"This book documents decades of Dabke study, building on an intricate and subtle reading of contemporary ethnomusicology, anthropology, political science and cross-disciplinary domains concerned with embodiment, gender and sexuality, flow, the senses, to offer an ambitious and intricate theorization of 'hearing' rooted in movement and distributed 'balance.' There is no other book like this in the field."–Martin Stokes, author of The Republic of Love
"This is a landmark study. Its engaging discussion, theoretically rich analytical framework, and fine-grained ethnographic detail make it a unique contribution to the literature on Syria, the Arab World, the MENA region, and, in fact, in the study of 'ethnochoreology' globally."–Jonathan H. Shannon, author of Performing al-Andalus: Music and Nostalgia around the Mediterranean
"Silverstein conducts an illuminating choreographic analysis that reveals how Dabke assists in the construction of national, local, class, and gender identities in ways that both challenge and reinforce power relations."–Susan Leigh Foster, Distinguished Professor, UCLA